Aug. 28 - WorldCatch News Network - AgriPure Holdings Plc, which owns River Kwai International Food Industry Co, Thailand's largest exporter of tinned sweet corn, plans to expand into frozen seafood production.

Formerly Nithi Venture Plc, AgriPure is finalising details of the move that will expand its operations outside of agricultural production and marketing. The plan will be settled at a shareholders' meeting in November.

Roj Burusratanabhand, the chief executive, said that as the company had no experience in seafood processing, it was studying the market potential for all types of seafood. When it finalised its selection, it would look for production bases in Thailand.

AgriPure sees large potential for seafood exports. The company has access to market information from the global networks of the Boston Consulting Group, which is a shareholder of the Navis Asia Fund. On the production side, one option is to hire local factories to make the seafood for export.

AgriPure is owned 90 percent by the Navis Asia Fund, which finalised the takeover of Nithi Venture last August. Individual Thai shareholders own 10 percent. The company's paid-up capital is 2.4 billion baht and its registered capital is 3.5 billion baht.

AgriPure's core business, River Kwai International Food, has projected between 20 percent and 25 percent growth in turnover this year with revenue of 700 million baht and an eventual profit. The company expects an improvement in performance in the second half of the year. In the first half, it posted a loss of seven million baht on revenue of 400 million baht.

Sweet corn generated about 65 percent of the revenue, with the rest derived from fresh fruits and vegetables. The company expects to export 80 percent of its produce this year and increase the proportion to 90 percent next year.

River Kwai has the annual capacity to process 100,000 tons of fresh sweet corn but is operating at 60 percent . However, the firm anticipates 10 percent growth in sales this year because of better marketing in Asian countries except Japan. Suppliers in the United States, River Kwai's major competitors, have had a poor harvest and a reduction in plantation areas. This year, River Kwai has managed to enter the US market.

Thailand exports about 2,000 containers of canned sweet corn a year, of which River Kwai supplies about 1,000. The company exports to major canneries Del Monte, S&W and Bonduelle.

Mr Roj said there was tougher competition in the export of canned sweet corn from Thailand as the number of producers had increased. However, River Kwai, as the market leader, had tried to co-operate with other producers to obtain the best overall returns.

A club of sweet-corn producers had been established to establish Thailand's position in the world market and provide a forum for producers to talk about issues such as how to avoid under-pricing that could provoke investigations and retaliatory action by trading partners.

The company's exports of fresh vegetables -- mainly baby corn, asparagus and okraave been growing rapidly. River Kwai supplies Tesco and Sainsbury's retail chains in Britain.

The company plans to spend 30 million baht on building a packing house in northern Thailand to increase its production capacity. In Kanchanaburi, the firm has planted 700 rai of organic vegetables and 1,000 rai of conventionally grown crops. It will supply organic vegetables under the AgriPure brand to the Aden Group next year to meet a local market estimated to be worth 10 million baht a year.

River Kwai will soon introduce canned corn soup in domestic market under the Tastee brand.

The company's annual revenue from domestic sales of sweet corn is estimated at 20 million baht this year.

(c) 2001, Bangkok Post, Thailand. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

Thailand's largest canned corn exporter to produce seafood